National Consultant (Lawyer)

Consultancy to provide legal services to the FENASOL Domestic Workers’ Union
 

Organizational Unit:    ILO Regional Office for Arab States, Beirut
Requirement:              National consultant (lawyer)
Duty Station:               Lebanon
Source of funding:      FAIRWAY / Work in Freedom
Duration:                      75 working days over 6 months (equivalent to 12.5 days per month)
To apply:                      Send CV to Rasha Majzoub (majzoub@ilo.org)
Application Deadline: 14 May 2018

Background

Domestic workers in Lebanon are a critical component of the labour force, with a key role in in supporting households in cooking and a variety of care-related functions such as looking after the children and nursing the elderly and the disabled. According to Ministry of Labour (MOL), 168,000 MDWs hold a work permit; an additional 80,000 estimated to be in an irregular situation. Because they are excluded from coverage under the Labour Law, migrant domestic workers are vulnerable to breaches of their rights, as set out in the standard contract, and have limited recourse to address these breaches.

The need to advocate for better protection of domestic workers, but in a way which amplifies the voice of the workers’ themselves, led to the creation of an initiative called the Founding Committee of Domestic Workers under the National Federation of Workers and Employees Trade Unions in Lebanon (FENASOL). In January 2015, the Founding Committee of Domestic Workers, with the support of ILO and ITUC held a congress and established the Domestic Workers Union (DWU). Despite not receiving recognition from the government, the DWU is working with the support of organizations such as the ILO to gain credibility and increase outreach in a way that reflects the empowered voice of the domestic workers in general, and migrants among them specifically (as this sector is mostly occupied by migrants in Lebanon).

In March 2017, the Executive Committee of the DWU approved an Action Plan to strengthen the DWU and increase its credibility, with a number of activities proposed including mechanisms to increase its membership by providing services and activities. An important and urgent priority identified by the DWU member was legal information and support. For this reason, the DWU is seeking to recruit a lawyer who can support members by providing different kinds of legal assistance including information and (in certain cases) legal representation, as well as developing an institutional legal database within the union for registering legal complaints. The goals of this activity are:
- Increased justice for MDWs;
- Increased awareness of legal problems and possible solutions for MDWs;
- Accurate statistics on abuses against MDWs which can then be used in policy and advocacy work by the DWU;
- Increased hope and dignity for MDWs.
This activity falls within the International Labour Organization’s Regional Fair Migration Project in the Middle East (FAIRWAY project) and the Work in Freedom (WIF) project.

Objectives and deliverables

The legal consultant is required to:
1. Provide high quality legal services to the members of the DWU including:
 Create a legal database to record, track and analyze the cases including:
o Developing a case template for each claim to be filled out and used by trained members/volunteers of the DWU;
o Train selected members of the DWU on case management and referral;
o Set up a filing system on the DWU computers which can be easily accessed and searched by the DWU Executive Committee members/volunteers; and
o Consult with an IT security resource person to ensure that data is protected (if additional cost is required it will be covered outside the scope of this contract)
 Conduct intake interviews (including and presenting initial opinion and advice) through the following methods:
o Weekly ‘drop in’ legal clinic staffed by the consultant on either Saturdays or Sundays for a minimum of 2 hours at the DWU office, during which time members can come without an appointment to discuss their legal issue. The time should be agreed with the DWU executive committee, and announced to all members.
o Ad-hoc phone interview based on request by member, or a referral through a DWU member;
o Coordinate with the DWU Executive Committee to ensure translation where the consultant does not speak the language of the domestic worker.
 Establish criteria for ‘priority’ cases which will be provided with ongoing investigation and support (and those which could be referred to other organizations), and validate these criteria with the DWU executive committee.
 For selected cases, conduct research to better understand context and facts and support such domestic workers through an appropriate channel which might include (as per Annex below):
o Mediation/conciliation of disputes with employers (by contact employer; arrange discussion/mediation and document outcome)
o Complying with administrative procedures (including preparing documents, etc)
o Linking the domestic worker with other necessary services (medical, psycho-social, financial) through a referral mechanism.
 Represent domestic workers in a minimum of four legal proceedings selected based on the priority criteria defined above, including by:
o Preparation and filing of all court documents (including urgent injunctions where required to challenge deportation);
o Collection of evidence to support claim and arranging translation where required;
o Legal research;
o Court appearance;
o Regular follow up with the court authorities
o Documenting proceedings, challenges, and recommendations based on the context of the legal system in Lebanon and lessons learned.
2. Provide legal awareness and training to all DWU members:
 Create an easy-to-read legal guide (comprising of fact sheets or Frequently Asked Questions based on common questions asked by members and information on key information on international conventions, verdicts and jurisprudence in Lebanese courts;
 Conduct at least one workshop for DWU members on the materials developed, and key legal tools available.
 Conduct at least one workshop train a group of volunteers (identified by FENASOL) to work on research and legal consultation.
Responsibilities of consultant
The consultant will be required to submit a summary of intake and cases completed for each month, and a daily log of number of hours worked.
The consultant will undergo a mid-term evaluation three months following commencement of the country where he/she will be reviewed by the ILO (in consultation with the FENASOL DWU) in accordance with the following criteria:
- Demonstration of technical, general and other specific knowledge and skills required to perform duties and accomplish objectives under this contract;
- Professional and clear communication skills with domestic workers;
- Evidence of a productive working relationship with staff of the DWU executive committee;
- Clear ability to analyse available legal options and capability to make well-reasoned and timely decisions;
- Expertise in managing procedures in recording casework; number of cases each month.
The ILO reserves the right to terminate the contract where the consultant:
- Breaches the confidentiality of any domestic worker;
- Is penalized, suspended and/or disbarred from the relevant Bar Association;
- Commits any misconduct in respect of a domestic worker;
- Fails to undertake deliverables, or fails to comply with the requirements to submit relevant reports to the ILO (as below), for at least two months.

Responsibilities of ILO and FENASOL

The ILO and FENASOL will support the work of the consultant in the following ways:
FENASOL will be responsible for:
 offering appropriate office space, including access to land line phone and internet, and particularly for the ‘drop in’ clinic
 selecting a group of domestic workers to be trained on filling out the case template
 selecting a group of volunteers/members to participate in a training workshop with the consultant, and to work on research and legal consultation in future

ILO will be responsible for:
 Linking the consultant to other lawyers working on domestic work cases (to provide mutual support and guidance as required);
 Supporting consultant to identify interpreters and other support services.
 Providing technical support to the consultant as required through ILO migration team: Sophia Kagan -Fairway and Zeina Mezher- Work in Freedom

Activities will include:

Creation of legal data base (including training of DWU on case management
Research relevant to the complaints, mediation with employers, documentation of proceedings, challenges, and recommendations based on the context of the legal system in Lebanon and lessons learned
“Drop in” legal clinic (including ad-hoc phone interviews
Court representation and case follow up (including admin fees and interpretation)
Develop legal material
Transportation to courts, FENASOL and other premises related to the cases, mobile phone use, photocopy

Budget and payment terms

The consultant should present a quotation for the services provided. Payment will be done based on deliverables agreed upon in the contract that will be issued by the ILO.
All deliverables should be submitted in MS Word to the ILO (Zeina Mezher (mezher@ilo.org)) and FENASOL (fenasol@gmail.com and domesticworkersfenasol@gmail.com).

Selection of consultant

The consultant must have the following attributes:
 At least a Bachelor of Law and valid licence to practice law in Lebanon;
 Minimum 6 years of experience practising as lawyer in Lebanon including strong previous experience appearing before the Administrative, Criminal and Labour courts;
 Advanced knowledge of laws and regulations relevant to issues faced by domestic workers including residency laws1 and the labour code;
 Knowledge of human rights and ILS and linkages to the Lebanese laws;
 Familiarity with legal issues faced by domestic workers and preferably previous experience representing domestic workers, migrant workers or refugees;
 Excellent writing and oral skills in Arabic & English, knowledge of French would be highly beneficial;
 Strong decision making skills, and a problem-solving attitude;
 Adherence to professional and ethical laws and charters;
 Effective communication skills including the ability to explain the legal process in a simple and participatory method;
 Strong time-management skills and ability to comply with deadlines;
 Willingness to work on Saturdays or Sundays (for the drop in legal clinic) and during evening hours for urgent cases; and
 Experience with negotiation, mediation and conciliation.
1 Law Regarding Entry to Residency in and Exit from Lebanon 1962 and relevant decrees

Annex I: Suggested additional reading

Useful templates for Domestic worker Intake Form and Coding Sheets
 Appendix 11 of Open Society Foundation (2010) Community-based paralegals: A Practitioner’s Guide
General reading on domestic workers’ access to justice in Lebanon
 Nasi and Tannous. 2014. Access to Justice for Migrant Domestic Workers in Lebanon. ILO Regional Office for Arab States and Caritas Lebanon: Beirut
 ILO, Legal Agenda (2013) Assessment of Legal Verdicts in cases involving women migrant domestic workers in Lebanon in Lebanese Courts files 2013 (unpublished; under the EU PROWD project)
Initial interview
* take domestic worker's statement
* identify problems
* Ask what domestic worker needs
* Provide initial legal information on rights
Mediation/conciliation
Provide further information on rights and procedures
Assist domestic worker to navigate authorities (procedural support)
Litigation
* civil litigation (Labour court)
* criminal litigation (Criminal Courts)
* residency/deportation defense (Administrative court)
Investigation and fact-finding